Wednesday practice update

The Ducks were in full pads this morning in Autzen Stadium, continuing their preparations for Saturday’s 7:15 p.m. home opener against Purdue. For the third day in a row, the entirety of practice was left open to the public.

The mood of the team continues to seem better each day in the wake of last week’s loss to Boise State. Suspended running back LeGarrette Blount was not in attendance, presumably attending to some sort of responsibility relating to his punishment for last week’s incident.

Both units looked good against the scout teams, as you’d expect. The passing game looked particularly sharp towards the end of the day, and the defense came up with a number of turnovers. Whether the performance by the offense at Boise State was an anomaly or a sign of what’s to come this season can’t really be known until Saturday’s game, though.

The Ducks began the day in the weight room, Chip Kelly said, and will be off their feet this afternoon to recover from a heavy workload this morning. Thursday and Friday will be more mental days of practice, he said.

The day began with some field goals in simulated “clutch” scenarios, and Morgan Flint again looked pretty good. He didn’t appear to miss until backed up to the limits of his range, around 50 yards. For the second day in a row, Rob Beard then came on and missed a very lengthy kick.

Safety T.J. Ward was off crutches today but still had a walking boot on his sprained ankle. Receiver Rory Cavaille caught some passes from an athletic trainer but has yet to suit up after missing last week’s game with a shoulder injury.